Pandemic puppy boom is over, says Dogfather
THE “Dogfather” has revealed the price of puppies is coming down as the pandemic-driven boom fades, writes David Stephenson.
Graeme Hall, who appears on Channel 5’s Dogs Behaving Badly, said prices “went through the roof” during earlier lockdowns.
But he said he does not anticipate a new wave of impulse buys, even if new restrictions are imposed.
“I feel a sea change, and the reason is the price of puppies has come down. This time last year, because of impulse buys, the price of puppies went through the roof.that led to an increase in puppy/dog theft.
“I think all those who said knee jerk, ‘Let’s get one’ have done so by now and have got it out of their system. But you shouldn’t just get a puppy to entertain you over Christmas.that’s wrong.
“Ask yourself, ‘Why are we doing this?’ Is it just to make your Instagram account complete?
“But if you can afford to get a dog, and want to teach the children better responsibility, and you’re all going to learn how to look after a dog on an ongoing basis, that sounds much better. Just be honest with yourself.”
He said previous lockdowns had a big impact on the mental health of dogs: “A lot of the behaviours started in lockdown and have just got worse.
“Because no one visited the house during lockdown, dogs have been hit by socialisation issues.
“A puppy for instance probably hasn’t seen anyone new – just a delivery guy. Dogs are more anxious now when people come to the door.”
The new series of Dogs Behaving Badly, starting next month, runs to an expanded 15 episodes.
“We’ve come up with some amazing stories from more than 30,000 dogs who applied to appear.
“Just last week we had a case of a dog who was obsessed with licking a bald man’s head.
“And in the first episode of the new series, there’s a dog who lives in the Lake District and they take it towindermere, where it promptly swims to the middle of the lake!there wasn’t a lot I could do – I can’t walk on water.”
And what breed would he recommend for a new owner? “If I was pressed, and you’re after a medium to large-sized family dog, I would say go for a Lab. They’re a good bet – you can’t go very far wrong.”
Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly, C5, January 4